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Fashion’s Favourite: Top 10 Most Popular Brands of 2016

By Vivian Hendriksz

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Fashion

London - In today’s digital driven age companies looking to run a successful and popular fashion brand have to tick off a different type of checklist. Long gone are the days when a simple newspaper advertisement, paired with a clever celebrity campaign and word of the mouth was enough to ensure a brand’s popularity - nowadays fashion brands need to ensure they are on top of their social media game, or face falling off the radar. This means having a killer marketing campaign on Facebook, a witty repertoire on Twitter, as well as visually stunning showcase on Instagram and Pinterest, in addition to slaying the game on Snapchat.

A photo posted by adidas (@adidas) on

But which fashion brands are dominating the social media ring, and which ones are struggling to remain on top? FashionUnited previously calculated the popularity of each major, global fashion, lifestyle and sportswear brand based on their social media followers on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest as well as Instagram mentions to rate the Top 10 most Popular Fashion Brands of 2015. In June 2016, we updated our list to bring you the Top 10 most Popular Fashion Brands of 2016 H1. Now as the year comes to an end, we bring you our end of year list of the Top 10 (11 really) most popular fashion brands for 2016.

Top 10 Most Popular Fashion Brands on Social Media December 2016

Top 10 Most Popular Fashion Brands on Social Media June 2016

All of the brand’s in the Top 10 have gained more followers over the last 6 months, thereby becoming more popular, especially in terms of Instagram followers. However a quick glance at December’s chart in comparison to June’s shows that we now really have a Top 11 (but 10 sounds nicer), as both H&M and Burberry are tied in tenth place, which comes as somewhat as a surprise, seeing as Burberry was in eighth place this June and is widely thought to have the best social media strategy among its luxury peers. However, luxury conglomerates Kering and LVMH have been investing heavily in their digital strategies over the past few months and boosting their brands online presence, which seems to be paying off as Dior, Gucci and Louis Vuitton all held their rankings from June to December 2016.

One of the most significant risers within the Top 10 is Zara. The Spanish fast-fashion brand rose from tenth place to eighth place, thanks to a surge in followers in Instagram and Pinterest. However it is sportswear giant Nike who has gained the most followers over the past 6 months, gaining 12.7 million followers on Instagram alone. Adidas follows closely (as always) gaining 12 million Instagram followers since June, 2016. Both sportswear companies have been rivals for a long time, and although American giant Nike is in the lead, the gap between the two continues to shrink.

A photo posted by NikeWomen (@nikewomen) on

Nike’s mission statement, “to bring inspiration and innovation to every athlete in the world,” is at the heart of their very visual story. Their images, which range from runners on a snow covered street to surfers catching the heat, are inspiring without being too distant from people’s everyday lives. Nike’s Instagram feed for example offers a good balance of everyday athletes, yoga instructors and runners and well known, professional athletes, all whose faces are not always the centre of the image. The photographs also include a variety of subjects, women and men from all ages and races, which makes it easier for their followers to feel a part of Nike’s culture. Product is never central to their Instagram images, which is also key to ensuring each photograph is part of a wider storyline.

Most Popular Brands on Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest and Twitter December 2016

Most Popular Brands on Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest and Twitter June 2016

On the other hand Adidas has been leveraging its new found fashion appeal in terms of its classic sneaker comeback and feeding this back into its wider brand narrative. Adidas new slogan “The Creator Brand” sees the German sportswear brand portraying fitness pursuits as a form of creative expression. This is reflected in its adverts featuring ambassador athletes such as James Harden as well as moles like Karlie Kloss. While Adidas strives to inspire its consumers with its imagery, they also aim to ensure its feels familiar, is accessible and comfortable as well in order to connect to their target audience rather than alienate them. Paired with Adidas new sense of direction and success in merging fashion with sport, it should come as no surprise its catching up in popularity to Nike.

A photo posted by Jasmine Tookes (@jastookes) on

However, when it comes to making a buzz on social media, no one does it quite like Victoria’s Secret. The lingerie giant pulled out all the stops this November for its annual fashion show and launched one of the most visible social media pushes on two of its most visual platforms - Instagram and Snapchat. Not only did VS promote images and films on all its social media channel in the run up to its big show, its ‘Angels’, aka models of the moment Kendall Jenner, Bella Hadid and Jasmine Tookes shared behind the scenes snaps and videos days before the show was even staged. This ranged from photos of the models boarding their private jet to Paris, to visiting the city, pre-show events and rehearsals, all of which heavily resonated with its younger consumers.

Photo Credit: Julien M. Hekimian / AFP

Adidas
most popular fashion brand
MULTIMEDIA
Nike
Victoria's Secret